What Happens When the Second Male Lead Powers Up Chapter 695 Discussion

Yes, I'm a female reader. And yes, this novel actually seems a bit more female-oriented than male-reader-oriented, you know, since the premise is MC transmigrating into the female-oriented romance novel that his sister was a fan of. Of course, there are no evident borders between genres, so even if male readers are interested in trying a read, I'd recommend them a try as well. There are no rules saying male readers shouldn't read this novel, are they?

Okay, the audience gender talks aside, here is my opinion about the novel's audience limit. As others also said, the novel is aimed at a pretty specific taste. The MC is altruistic, enough to be called a pushover by some, and the story is not always eventful so if you're interested in constant fast-paced adventures or fight/action scenes, this is probably not for you. Also, this is debatable too, but the story has a lot of portrayals of the bond between the 3 main characters - Yeseo/Jesse, Christelle, and Cedric, which may disappoint the romance-seeking audience since every interaction between Yeseo/Jesse and Christelle is pretty much... just romance bait, and on the other hand, it will also cause confusion since the bond between Cedric and Yeseo/Jesse seems... above what we would call normal bro friends. Not to mention, the novel is too long at this point and the ending in raws will probably be next year. That'll be an extremely long journey not everyone would want to embark on.

That's for the audience, now, about the story. I used to enjoy the novel very much, but as you can see, currently I'm at chapter 695 and I gave this 3 stars. The reasons are that:

Spoiler

• • There is literally no character growth. The characters are on 700 chapters now, yet there is absolutely no growth in them. At first, Yeseo/Jesse's misunderstanding about Cedric x Christelle ship is funny and also heartbreaking since he just literally considered them 'unreal characters', but now, even when things have cleared up, they have got a talk, he is considering them his friends, he still projects his 'opinion' over them. Not to mention, when the war arc came in full swing, Yeseo/Jesse still... projected his idealism and altruism over things. Yes, I know he's a law student and he has a very strong mindset of justice, but by now, he should have already realized medieval politics and wars don't function the same as a modern court. Christelle and Cedric are also the same. After the friends' fight, then understanding and sympathizing, their behaviors... still remain the same.

• • Too many idle talks and useless details. Around the first 100 chapters or so, the idle slice-of-life scenes like the food descriptions were fun and cute. But it's supposed to be a big fight right now, with layers of conspiracies and schemes underneath. Yet... the novel still includes those useless scenes of the 'romance/BL' bait, the food descriptions, the divine beasts acting cute, and random monologues. Mind you, I'm also a fan of romance and BL genres, but I really can't immerse myself when the novel is supposed to be during some serious happenings and yet they still manage to include those idle breaks. The villains and masterminds are there, alive and well, then what are the main characters even doing? Joking around like some children and getting 'jealous' of each other?

• • Too many Korean meme references. Yes, the meme references were funny and comedic during the first arc, in Christelle's POV. It really showed the spirit of an energetic Korean during the modern era, and I enjoyed the cameos referring to Duke, Please Repent and some other famous novels too. But now... it's just a huge mix of unserious memes and as I said, the story is supposed to enter a serious arc right now. Why does it feel that the story is becoming more and more of a children's novel?
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I used to like TWSB every much but as expected of novels that are stretched out with no conclusions, TWSB has lost its charm and appeal. (Even on R*dibooks which is a major platform, the reviews recently aren't positive, either). So I'll have to consider whether I should go with this novel till the end or not, sadly.